Appaeatus for setting tjp ship s rigging



'UNITED STATES PATENT GFFICE.

`BARTON RIGKETSON, OF NFB" BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS.

APPARATUS FOB` SETTING UP SHIPS RIQGING.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 31,908, dated April 2, 1861.

To all whom 'it may concern.'

Be it known that I, BARTON RIcKnTsoN,

of New Bedford, in the county of Bristol and State of Massachusetts,have invented a new and useful Improvement in Setting Up the Standing Rigging of Ships and other Vessels; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same,` reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which-w Figure l, is a side view of the lower end of one of the shrouds of a vessel with my invention applied. Fig. 2, is a front view of the same with the shroud and lanyard in section. right angles to each other of the upper blocks. l

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.`

blocks with sheaves in place of the deadeyes commonly used in the standing rigging of ships and other vessels.

It consists in a certain construction of such blocks with provision for securing the ends of the lanyards.

To enable others to make and use my invention I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

A, and B, are the two blocks. The lower block A, is made of wrought iron with a fork a, a, for the reception of the two sheaves C, C, and their pin c, and with a plate Z), which is bolted to the side of the vessel, in the same way as the chains used with ordinary dead eyes. Between the sheaves C, C, there is `fitted to the pin c, a loose plate CZ, on which is formed an eye e, to serve as a becket for the attachment of one end of the lanyard D. This plate cl, is made with a 'convex boss on each side as shown in Fig. 3, and the sheaves are made with corresponding concave recesses in their inner sides for the reception of the bosses 5, 5, on the plate el, by which means without making the block unnecessarily wide or reducing the width of the outer portions of the sheaves a broad bearing for the plate d, upon the pin c, is provided, the said plate beingcapable ofoscillating upon the said pin, so that the becket c, works from the axis of the sheaves of the block, which is an important feature of my invention.

Figs. 3, and 4L, are sections at The upper block B, is made with a fork a', a', for the reception of the sheaves C', C', and their pin c, and with a grooved shank f, of the form shown in Figs. 8 and 4, to lit the eye g, at the lower end of the shroud in such a manner as to make a perfectly rigid connection between the block and shroud so that the block can not chafe the eye of the shroud. The fork a, a', of this block is made of wrought iron, and the shank of brass', the fork being first forged and having the brass shank cast to it by being placed in the mold in which the shank is to be cast.

The eye of the shroud is made fastV to the shank f, by seizi'ngs li., h, the lower one of which passes through an eye t', provided for it in the shank. The pin c', of the block B, has fitted to it between its sheaves C, C', a loose plate cl, in all respects like the loose plate d, of the lower block A, 'said plate having an eye e, to serve as a becket to attach the opposite end of the lanyard D, to that which is attached to the becket c, of the lower block, and the said becket c, being' like e, free to work from the axis of the sheaves of its respective block.

The advantage to be derived from this mode of setting up standing rigging consists in its being operated with greater facility, in its effecting a great reduction of weight, in its offering less obstruction in sailing on a wind, and, what :is most important, in its working without chafe which makes both shroud and lanyard much more durable than when the ordinary arrangement of dead-eyes is employed. The entire freedom from chafe depends in a. very great degree upon the arrangement of the beckets to swing from the axes of the sheaves of the blocks.

Vhat I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent; is, y

The employment in combination with sheave blocks applied to take the place of dead-eyes in standing rigging, of beckets c, e, formed upon plates (Z, d, arranged to oscillate upon the sheave-pin c, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

BARTON RICKETSON. lVitnesses WM. H. TAYLOR, S. H. COOK. 

